The Beginning of the End
by Fallen-night of ShadowClan
Summary: The Clans are in danger of perishing once and for all. However, five kits of the four Clans with great destinies have the power to save the Clans... can they see past their kithood rivalry and do what's best for the Clans- unite? R&R please! Thank you!
1. Prologue

CAST OF CHARACTERS

SHADOWCLAN

**Leader**: Logstar- Dark brown tom with amber eyes

**Deputy**: Fallenhawk- White tom with ginger splotches

**Medicine cat**: Sparrowleaf- Tortoiseshell she-cat

**Warriors**: Wolf-flight- Silver tom

Meadowcry- Pale ginger tom

Firefern- Ginger tabby she-cat

Cedarfrost- Tabby tom with a white underbelly and green eyes

Oaktail- Mottled she-cat

APPRENTICE, TORNPAW

Littlerye- Lithe tabby tom

Stormflower- Gray she-cat

APPRENTICE, TIGERPAW

Foxblaze- Medium-length furred ginger-and-white tom with a white tail tip

Hailfeather- White tom with blue eyes

Swiftblaze- Black-and-white tom

Waspriver- Ginger-and-white tom

Sorrelwhisker- Tortoiseshell she-cat

APPRENTICE, SNOWPAW

**Apprentices: **Tornpaw- Russet tom with one eye

Tigerpaw- Black-and-white she-cat

Snowpaw- Brown she-cat with white tail

**Queens: **Appleleap- Calico pelt (mother of Sandkit and Treekit)

Bluefrost- Blue-gray pelt (mother of Petalkit, Silverkit, and Lilykit)

**Elders: **Nightfur- Black tom

Patch- Black-and-gray tom

Beetlefire- Blue-gray she-cat

Mudflight- Brown tom

WINDCLAN

**Leader: **Sunstar- Ginger tom

**Deputy: **Brackenfoot- Golden brown she-cat

**Medicine cat: **Cloudbreeze- White tom

**Warriors: **Copperbreeze- Russet tom

Gingerleaf- Ginger tabby tom

Lichenmask- Creme-colored she-cat

Dapplesong- Dappled she-cat

Redheart- Russet she-cat

Darksun- Dark tabby tom

Brambletail- Tabby tom

APPRENTICE, FIREPAW

Eaglestrike- Black tom with fierce amber eyes

Heronfeather- Light gray tom

APPRENTICE, BEECHPAW

**Queens: **Featherpelt- Silver tabby pelt (mother of Barleykit and Daisykit)

THUNDERCLAN

**Leader: **Emberstar- Dark russet tom

**Deputy: **Yarrowtail- Black-and-white tom

**Medicine cat: **Harespring- White tom

**Warriors: **Tigerflight- Tabby tom

Pebbletail- Lithe tortoiseshell she-cat

Larchbreeze- Calico she-cat

Lionpelt- Golden brown tom

APPRENTICE, MARSHPAW

RIVERCLAN

**Leader: **Mousestar- Light brown she-cat

**Deputy: **Vixenpelt- Ginger tabby she-cat

**Medicine cat: **Doveflight- White she-cat

APPRENTICE, CREEKLEAP

**Warriors: **Flintstrike- Light creme tom

Graythorn- Gray tom

Thistlesong- Black-and-white she-cat

Ivyclaw- Gray-and-white she-cat

Kinkwhisker- Brown she-cat

Leafgaze- Tabby she-cat

**Prologue **

The sky was a dark turquoise above the starry-pelted cats. The river was a beautiful hue of crisp blue, and it rushed by the four cats sitting in an awkward silence beside each other in a circle. All of them were restless and uneasy, but the ginger tom was doing the best to contain himself.

"I knew this day would come," growled a pale gray she-cat.

"We all did, Mistystar," said a white tom with black paws. "Once again."

"Do not panic," snapped the ginger tom, his forest green eyes blazing. "This is not the end. The Clans have to survive. We have for generations!"

"Firestar, what do you expect them to do?" asked Mistystar, sounding exasperated. "The Twolegs are coming nearer and nearer. Everything is getting destroyed. There is no-where to go!"

"Yes, there is. Do not pretend you do not know. You are only freeting, and it is meddling with you." Firestar raised his chin and looked her, and she broke eye contact.

"The union," said a new voice. A tabby tom joined the other three, and he looked just as gaunt. "There is a way for them to live, Mistystar, and you know it."

"Blackstar," said Firestar solemnly, turning to the black-footed white tom, "as bad as it sounds, we must unite."

"Unite!" exclaimed the tom in disbelief, "we have been separate for ages. As well as we can work together, Firestar, we are still four Clans."

"No! Listen to me," Firestar said, and the others backed off; he was beginning to lose his patience, and it was evident in his voice. "We must forge our skills together. We must find a way to survive, even if it means blending our differences…"

The three leaders exchanged a glance. Firestar drove on: "I know you three know it. Thunderstar has talked to me, and I know that Windstar, Shadowstar, and Riverstar all agree on what to do. It is up to us to make that happen. Do not try to stop this. It is the only way."

Finally, the tabby tom broke the silence. "There is a kit in WindClan," he whispered, "with a special destiny."

Firestar nodded slowly. "I know. Watch over her, as I will with my chosen one. They will lead a path of greatness for the Clans in the future..."

Blackstar snorted and turned away briefly. Why should Firestar get all the credit? His kit definitely wasn't going to be the greatest.

"Blackstar? All right there?" asked the tabby, trying to peer over Blackstar's shoulder.

Scowling slightly, Blackstar turned back. "I'm fine, Onestar." Looking at Firestar, he continued, "I know that we cannot let the Clans perish." he sighed. "We will each do what we need to do. Destiny will lead these kits to meet one day, and they will soon see past Clan boundaries… and establish new ones."

"They're not all kits," Mistystar reminded.

Blackstar nodded silently. Onestar was looking at him with a weird expression, and Firestar was distracted, deep in thought. Mistystar was staring down at her paws.

"Very well," said Firestar, "I trust that you all know what to do. Good day. You must not tell the Destined their true fate. They shall discover it themselves," he said in a bossy voice. "They shall all become great leaders of their time. However, keep in mind that this will not be their path unless they chose so… and their influence comes from the Clan around them…" And he disappeared, the ferns shaking slightly as he traversed them. Mistystar mumbled and went the other direction, leaving Blackstar and Onestar alone.

"You're jealous," Onestar said immediately after the gray she-cat was gone.

"StarClan cannot split," growled Blackstar, "but I will not let ThunderClan get all the glory again. Sandkit shall be more powerful than his, with a greater destiny."

"Barleykit as well," said Onestar, and Blackstar felt a twinge of annoyance; it looked as if the tabby had kept pace with his thoughts. Perhaps Firestar was not the biggest competition.

"Well, that's that," yawned Onestar, stretching. "Good-day, Blackstar."

"Farewell," Blackstar murmured after him, watching the other leader leave. Turning back, he glanced down upon the living cats, sleeping peacefully in their dens. His gaze switched from a slumbering kit in a large moor to a pale ginger kit asleep in the ShadowClan marsh. "Sandkit," he murmured, "I have chosen you. I trust in your abilities, and you shall lead a Clan in the future. However…"

He gazed back towards the kit in the moor. _Barleykit is just as great as Sandkit. Onestar chose well, I will give him that… but this time, ShadowClan will triumph as the greatest. No, not even ThunderClan will be able to stop me, nor will their pesky ally, WindClan… _

He blinked, and looked once more at Sandkit. Beside him was a white tom…

"Ah, Treekit," Blackstar murmured, "I cannot see who you are deep down, but know that you are just as great as Sandkit. You shall help spur him to greatness." The white tom jumped down from the stars, and silently wove his way to the nursery, touching the kit on the head.

The kit beside Sandkit shimmered once, and then returned to normal- but Blackstar could tell that he wasn't so anymore. He returned to the sky, and-

"Blackstar?" said a voice. Firestar had returned. "What happened? I sensed a StarClanner leaving."

"Nothing," Blackstar responded, keeping his voice even, "I was just checking on Sandkit."

Firestar nodded, fixing his green gaze upon Blackstar. After a while, Blackstar looked away. "You can leave now, Blackstar, it is time for us to rest."

Blackstar gritted his teeth. Did Firestar think he controlled all of StarClan?

Furious, Blackstar stared Firestar down. Finally, Firestar was the one who glanced sideways. "Good-day, once again."

_Good-day, Firestar. You may have chosen one kit as your successor, oh Great One… but I chose two. _

**_Author's Note: _****Hello readers! Welcome to my first story! I am working to improve my writing, so any sort of reviews are appreciated! Thank you for reading! **

**~Fallenstar**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Wanna play?" Sandkit grinned into Treekit's eyes.

"No, Sandkit!" his brother growled. "I want to do something other than play moss-ball all day!"

"You mean sleep?" grumbled Sandkit. "What else is there to do?"

"We could ask the apprentices to teach us some basic moves," replied Treekit, his eyes glinting. "Petalkit, Silverkit, and Lilykit learned early."

"Wow! You mean it? What if they reject us?"

"That doesn't matter- we'll ask anyway."

"Okay," Sandkit chirped, and followed Treekit brother knew best.

"Hey!" yelled Treekit. Outside, Tigerpaw and Tornpaw lay side-by-side, talking.

"What's up, Treekit?" asked Tornpaw cheerfully, padding up. Sandkit caught his breath. Tornpaw had always creeped him out slightly- the tom had one eye!

"Sandkit!" Treekit snapped, kicking Sandkit out of his fright. Tornpaw looked mildly amused.

"It's okay. I get that often," he said. Sandkit felt even worse.

"Sorry," he squeaked out. Tornpaw nodded, but didn't respond, and Sandkit bit his lip.

"Hi, Treekit, Sandkit," said Tigerpaw, padding up from behind Tornpaw. "Can we help you?"

"Teach us some fighting moves!" Treekit exclaimed.

"Too early for you," Tigerpaw purred. "Maybe wait a day or two, until you can handle the work!"

"Aw, but!"

"C'mon, let's go do something else," encouraged Sandkit. If they weren't going to budge, there was no use in trying to push it. Time to look for something else to do.

"Okay. 'Bye guys!" Treekit called out. The two apprentices bad them a friendly farewell, but Sandkit could tell that Treekit was annoyed with him.

"What was that?" hissed his brother once the older cats were out of earshot. "That was so rude!"

"What?" demanded Sandkit. "They refused, and so that's… that," he finished lamely. Treekit snorted.

"Yo, Punykit! Minikit!" called a taunting voice. Both of them turned.

"Hi, Silverkit," said Treekit, sounding nervous. Sandkit gulped. Silverkit, though only three moons older, loomed over them as if he was a warrior. From birth, he was a large cat in size, and the sneer on his face, along with his hawk-like amber eyes, didn't lessen the fear Sandkit felt fluttering in his stomach.

The silver kit cast a shadow over the pair, momentarily blocking out the sun; his pelt glowed in the light, making him seem like some kind of omnipotent cat.

"Silverkit!" scolded a voice. Sandkit's heart sank. Petalkit to the rescue again. "Don't scare them! I told you not to!"

"I wasn't scaring them, dear sister," drawled Silverkit lazily.

"We weren't scared," Treekit mumbled, casting a sidelong glance at

Sandkit, which didn't go unnoticed by Silverkit.

"Well then," Silverkit said, as Petalkit gave indications for him to leave, "see you around. Check ya later. Cowards!"

"We weren't scared!" Treekit yelled after the two. Anger and annoyance built up within Sandkit. Who was Silverkit, getting to call him a coward? He could only clench his mouth shut and dig his tiny claws into the ground.

"And I'm Shadowstar!" sneered the silver kitten.

"You're not a she-cat!" Treekit roared after him, but they had gone.

"When I become leader," Sandkit said, finally finding his voice, "I'll boss him around so much-"

"-that he'll beg us for mercy," chuckled Treekit.

"Too right," agreed Sandkit defiantly. "You can be my loyal deputy."

"Nah," Treekit said, "I don't really want to be leader."

"Really?" Sandkit was surprised. "Don't you want to rule a Clan someday?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I just- don't have the ambition," said Treekit. "I just want to be a warrior. That's all I want."

* * *

"Hello, kits," a white tom greeted. He touched noses with Appleleap and switched his warm gaze over to Sandkit and Treekit.

"Wow! Fallenhawk!" exclaimed Treekit. "Hi!"

"Hi, dad!" squeaked Sandkit. He always took pride in how much of an important warrior Fallenhawk was to the Clan. He was the deputy! _And someday, I'll be the deputy, too. _

"Can we go out?" asked Treekit, pulling a wide-eyed face. Appleleap rolled her eyes.

"For the last time-"

"Yes, they can," Fallenhawk instantly replied, looking somewhat flustered. Appleleap glared at her mate, but the white tom cut across her: "it won't hurt to take them somewhere close. I'll watch them. We can go to the Empty Hollow."

"Yay! Out of the camp we go!" cheered Treekit. Sandkit experienced a rush of euphoria. Ha! In Silverkit's stupid face!

"Let's go!" crowed Sandkit, bouncing up immediately. Appleleap shook her head as Fallenhawk led his kits outside.

Silverkit and his littermates, Petalkit and Lilykit, were at the fresh-kill pile, eating.

"We're going outside, loser!" Sandkit couldn't help yelling. Silverkit's face twisted with jealousy, but he didn't respond. Sandkit felt his glare through his back, and he pranced outside with Fallenhawk and Treekit.


	3. Chapter 2

"Hey Fallenhawk, can _you _teach me how to fight?" asked Treekit, his voice a distant sound at the back of Sandkit's ears.

"Okay," he heard Fallenhawk respond. "Just some."

Sandkit heard scuffles behind him, and glanced back to see both of them lunging playfully for each other. Quietly, he slipped out. Free! He was free. Trapped in the tiny hollow was even worse than in the camp. Walking and occasionally running, he sniffed the air. It was starting to smell weird…

"Hello, kit!" said a voice. Sandkit looked up and balked. It wasn't a ShadowClan warrior- it was someone from another Clan! And he was a warrior!

"Invasion!" squealed Sandkit, launching himself at the warrior. Excitement coursed through him. This was his first battle! Unsheathing his claws, he batted weakly at the other cat's large foreleg.

"Nah," the warrior, a light tabby tom, said lazily. He shook Sandkit off with a wave of his paw, and he tumbled over his head, landing heavily. "I'm just RiverClan's medicine cat. Sorry about that," he smirked.

"Why are you on our territory?" Sandkit demanded, stumbling up and glaring at the cat. He wasn't about to lose! "Are you here to steal our herbs?"

"Nope. Just wanted to chat with Sparrowleaf about… er, medicine cat related stuff."

"Oh yeah? What stuff?" Sandkit growled. This cat was being extremely difficult, and it frustrated him. So what? He could just walk right in their territory, claim he was a medicine cat, and screw around, too.

"Prophecy stuff," said the tom solemnly. "And it's serious, so please excuse me." Marching off, the cat headed in the opposite direction.

"Wait!" Sandkit pounded after the so-called medicine cat. "As a defender of ShadowClan's territory-"

"Get out of the way!" the tom was beginning to sound impatient. "I'm not kidding about this. Do you see any other warriors with me?"

"No, but they could be hiding," said Sandkit stubbornly. The tom sighed.

"Well, they're not. Why are you even here? You're not allowed out of the camp. That's a rule for all kits."

"Don't tell me what to do!" Sandkit growled in frustration. "This is my Clan!"

"Well, this is also _not your business,_" the cat sassed back, and set off again.

"At least tell me your name!" shouted Sandkit furiously after him.

"Creekleap!" the tom called back irritably.

_A warrior for sure, _thought Sandkit defiantly. "Fallenhawk!" he squealed. Then, he realized he was among trees he did not recognize. Was he even in ShadowClan territory? "Fallenhawk? Help! I'm-"

Suddenly, Creekleap reappeared. "You're lost," he mused.

"Shut up," growled Sandkit. "I'm not. This is _my land. _Go on, to our camp, if you're so sure you're a medicine cat."

"Oh I'm sure. I'm destined to help," drawled Creekleap, looking mildly entertained. "You're going to camp?"

"No, our father took us out, and I just left to explore. They're in the Empty Hollow."

"I know where that is," Creekleap said immediately, "I'll take you. Then you can get out of my fur."

"I was never in your fur," protested Sandkit. "And how do _you _know where the Hollow is?"

"Been there," said Creekleap blandly, "there's marigold that grows there. Sparrowleaf showed me."

"So you are here to steal herbs!" exclaimed Sandkit, jumping to conclusions. "Well-"

"Look, do you want to go or not?"

"Fine! But I'm taking you right to my father. He's the deputy!"

"Oh, you're Fallenhawk's son! No wonder. You look just like him. Sandkit, right?" Creekleap seemed more cheerful as they set off for the Hollow.

"Yeah. I have a brother, too. His name's-"

"Sandkit!" growled Fallenhawk, stepping out of the Hollow. "I've been looking all over! Where _were _you?"

All the excitement that Sandkit had felt for 'capturing' Creekleap faded momentarily; then, he bounced back into the Hollow, knowing that Fallenhawk wouldn't be that angry; he wasn't Appleleap. "Look, Fallenhawk! Look, I found an invader! He's an enemy from RiverClan!" And Creekleap, on cue, stepped out.

"What!" Treekit exclaimed, looking furious. "Why didn't you call me?"

Fallenhawk glared at Sandkit. "It was bad enough that he left without telling me." Switching his gaze to Creekleap, he dipped his head. "Greetings, Creekleap. Sorry about my kits."

"No problem, Fallenhawk," Creekleap responded earnestly, reciprocating the white warrior's bow. "I have to talk to Sparrowleaf."

"Wait, wait wait!" Sandkit said, shaking his head. "Why aren't you guys fighting?"

"I'm the medicine cat, like I've told you already," said Creekleap, sounding exasperated. "Okay, medicine cat apprentice, but point is, we don't fight."

"Oh," Sandkit said, believing the tom this time. His tail drooped a little. No drama? "Lame!"

"It's not lame," said Fallenhawk gently, "he's doing a great thing for the Clans, helping and healing them. Without the medicine cats, no cat would've survived battle injuries and sickness."

"Okay," said Sandkit, but he wished that he could wipe the smug look off of Creekleap's face. _If the RiverClan warriors never survived their injuries, then that would be beneficial to our Clan. Hm, when I fight my first battle, I'll target the medicine cats. They'll be so injured, then can't even heal the injured._

**_A/N:_ I know this chapter is all dialogue, or mostly so. I like to show my characters' personalities through conversation, not just sticking it right in with a blunt thought. Let me know what you think! Reviews appreciated! Thanks for reading!**

**_~Fallen-night_**


End file.
